Kara Valentine's Day ni White Day
by Shiro Ryuu
Summary: [From Valentine’s Day to White Day] Cackle. I’ve cornered the market! It’s OujiroxKotaro, people! They were rivals in love... or, well, something like that... Polished shiny just in time for Valentine’s Day '07!
1. Valentines Double Date

**Disclaimer:** I'll take Oujiro and Wizard and you can keep the rest; how 'bout that?

**AN:** Heh. Fear the fangirl Japanese. Also, I'm pretty rusty on the manga and I've only seen the anime once, and to put it frankly I don't catch on too quick, so if I have anything at all wrong then don't hesitate to mention it :) This is my first Angelic Layer fic, after all. _Also, _yes, Cardcaptors is totally to blame for the chocolates, even though I know it was supposed to be stars and not bunnies. Hey, I had to be a _little _original. Other than that, enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter One: Valentines Double-Date**

* * *

Kotaro brushed his teeth in a daze, bent over to spit in the sink... and then straightened back up, and stared at his face in the mirror for a very long time.

Eventually, he wrinkled his nose in distaste. Plain face. That was his problem; had to be. Just because he didn't have some stupid, _pretty-boy _face...

He turned away with a sigh. Today was going to _suck_.

He hadn't used to mind Valentine's Day this much. It had always been a little awkward, granted, because he was forced to remember that Tamayo was a girl for at least two seconds when she gave him chocolate... But he could forget again quite quickly, so it wasn't too much of a problem. But then _Misaki _had shown up. Strangely, he hadn't had much of a problem thinking of her as a girl. _Girl, _his brain had told him, _girl! _And his heart had complied. So it should have been simple. But it wasn't.

_Let's go for a walk... _He'd said something like that, hadn't he - the 'pretty-boy'? His mind had been a sort of red blur at that point, so he couldn't really remember. But then Tamayo had _insisted _on being a girl, and somehow... it had wound up like this.

His jaw clenched involuntarily as he stuffed a few random last-minute articles into his back-pack. The truth - the nasty, brutish bully of a truth -, which should have been obvious to any casual observer, was that Tamayo was only someone he was with _because he couldn't be with Misaki_...

* * *

"Aw, you _shouldn't _have, Misakichi!" Tamayo gushed loudly, and promptly took a big bite out of her Valentine's chocolate.

Misaki grinned in an ever-so-slightly nervous fashion - Tamayo often had that effect on people - and handed another chocolate to Kotaro. "And I have one to give to Hatoko-chan too, over lunch break-"

"And one for _Ou-ji-ro-kun_, after school..." Tamayo added in a sing-song voice. Suddenly, her eyes gleamed dangerously. "I'll bet you saved your best chocolate recipe for _him, _didn't you? _Didn't you?_"

Misaki laughed awkwardly, blushing. "N-no, I-I don't really think so... well, I mean-"

But just then she was saved from any further embarrassment, as the teacher came in and started trying to quiet the sugar-filled students. Kotaro was left to stare moodily at the two pieces of chocolate adorning the surface of his desk.

One was a large and flashy heart-shaped piece that Tamayo had blushingly pushed into his hands before Misaki arrived. The other... was shaped like a bunny, and was identical to the one that Tamayo was still quietly munching on while everyone else was taking notes.

_And one for Ou-ji-ro-kun, after school... _He somehow suspected that Oujiro's chocolate wasn't shaped like a bunny.

As if Valentine's Day wasn't already embarrassing enough, Kotaro accidentally snapped his pencil.

* * *

_I am _NOT_ a stalker, I am _NOT_ a stalker, I am _NOT_ a..._

Well, okay, so it might have _looked_ that way. He _was_ creeping along the school corridors after a girl - Misaki, namely - always being sure to remain one corner behind, with the full intent of following her out of the school and to a secret, romantic rendezvous... He shook that thought off. But he _wasn't_ stalking her! Really.

...Well, maybe sorta. But if he was, then it was the bunny's fault.

For her part, the oblivious Misaki found that she was already having to fight to keep from blushing. _This is just silly! _she chided herself. _I'm not even outside yet! Pull yourself together, Misaki! _It was a bit odd, she supposed, but she had noticed that, ever since they'd officially started going out, she'd been feeling really uncomfortable around Oujiro. _But in a good way, _she added, sighing quietly to herself as she pushed her way through the rest of the after-school crowd trying to get out the doors. _Kinda floaty, I think..._

She finally made it out of the crush, and stood off to the side and bit her lip for a minute or two, fretfully scanning the mob for a high-school uniform. _He's so tall... I ought to be able to pick him out easier than this... _She was so busy concentrating on looking for someone who stood out that she totally failed to see the boy blending in with the shadows not too far away... nor did she notice the person coming up behind her, until he set a hand down on her shoulder.

"_EEKS_!"

Oujiro backed up, holding his hand up in mock-defense. "Eh... Gomen ni; I didn't mean to startle you _that _bad, Misaki-chan." With that, he flashed her a dashing smile that made her go, inconceivably enough, even redder.

Misaki glanced back toward the school, and felt her heart leap into her throat when she realized that the crowd had already thinned out considerably. In fact, there didn't seem to be anyone within hearing range at all. _Well, it's not like I can get any _more_ embarrassed_, she reasoned. She screwed her eyes shut, took a deep breath, and thrust a package out toward Oujiro. It was wrapped in clear gauzy material and tied with ribbons, so that one could clearly see the heart-shaped candy inside. "H-Happy Valentine's, Oujiro...kun..."

He accepted it after a mere moment's hesitation, smiling sweetly. "Why, thank you! Did you make this yourself? Really?" He beamed. "Then I'm sure it will be wonderful."

She stared up at him - him and his regal height! - and was too petrified to do any more than blush. She was so focused on his beautiful, beautiful eyes that she nearly jumped when he reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear... and really did jump, though only slightly, when she suddenly realized that his face was closer than it had been a moment ago...

And Kotaro fell out of a tree with an incoherent curse.

The couple blinked rapidly. A few people in the fringes of the distant group of students snickered into their hands. He picked himself up, blushing and sputtering and pointing.

Kotaro found that he wasn't quite sure _what_ he wanted to say - 'how dare you try to kiss your girlfriend!' sounded a little odd, after all - so he settled for a rather loud cry of, "Oujiro!"

The Prince of the Layer blinked a few more times at Kotaro's still-pointing finger, until he hurriedly lowered it, and then he gave a small bemused smile. "Ano... Yes?"

His face was a guilty fuchsia right now; he just knew it. Misaki looked adorably lost and flustered and confused... Speaking in the general direction of the ground, Kotaro lied: "Nothing! Uh, that is, I saw you two, and I thought I'd... just come say... mumblemumble..."

Oujiro simply stared at him for a long moment, until Kotaro was on the verge of yelling at him for being rude or something (completely disregarding the fact that _he _had been pointing mere seconds ago, naturally), but then he finally spoke. "Hey, I've got an idea! I was planning to invite Misakichi to go to the ice-cream parlor with me..." Insert squee-worthy smile, complete with glittery background, here. "So why don't we make it a double date? Do you know if Tamayo is still here?"

Kotaro gaped shamelessly. Like he thought he was so friggin' _pretty _or something! It occurred to him that there was something untrustworthy about this behavior; the so-called 'prince' seemed to be just a little _too _nice... But just as he was about to open his mouth to say who-knew-what, a great, near-lethal weight suddenly fell onto his shoulders. It knocked him to the ground and knocked all of the air out of his lungs at the same time, and the arm around his neck effectively deprived him of the ability to get any more. "Did someone say _ice-cream_?" a familiar voiced shrieked in his ear, and Kotaro could swear that, just for a moment, he sensed a Dark Cloud of Doom hovering over him...

* * *

And that was how they wound up at the ice-cream parlor, sitting boy-girl-girl-boy around the furthest table from the after-school press that they could get. Oujiro sat between Kotaro and Misaki, and Kotaro hated him for it, hated him with a passion. He sulked quietly into his mint-and-chocolate-chip bowl at first, until Tamayo hit him a few times for it and he was forced to plaster a fake smile over his face.

Oujiro had chocolate ice-cream in a cone, Kotaro noted for some reason, and he lapped delicately at it with his little, pink tongue... Kotaro bristled. He was doing that on _purpose, _he was sure of it! Like he thought he was _so_ damn pretty... Misaki actually liked this narcissistic pervert?-!

Oujiro looked up to meet his eyes at the same moment that he flicked his tongue out to catch a dot of chocolate at the corner of his lips, and Kotaro blanched. Hmm... must be the cold ice-cream... his stomach was doing something _most _peculiar...

Tamayo chose this moment to whack him on the back hard enough to make him choke. "Hey, I'm sorry to have ta cut this short..." she paused to make a face, "...but I have to write an English paper. I'm never taking another honors course again!" she wailed dramatically, and then stood, hesitated, and pecked Kotaro on the cheek. "Ano... pay for my ice-cream, onegai...?"

He grinned nervously, feeling his cheeks heating up. "Uh... sure..."

She caught him in an affectionate strangle-hold. "_Aw_, you're such a gentleman!" Then she released him again - he fell out of his chair, gasping and gagging and cursing mentally - and waved cheerily. "Well, see you guys tomorrow! Bye!"

As Misaki waved sheepishly in return, Oujiro offered Kotaro a hand. He pretended not to see it and got up by himself, grumbling.

After a few more minutes, Misaki pushed her bowl away. "Ah... I think I'm done, too," she declared. "It was very good, wasn't it, Oujiro-kun?"

Feeling even more decidedly sour than he had a moment ago, Kotaro reached for his wallet. Before he could fish it out of his pocket, though, Oujiro caught his wrist and smiled at him. "Don't bother. I'll pay - my treat."

Warm. Warm hand. Kotaro clenched his jaw so hard that he thought his teeth might break, and would have jerked his hand away if it hadn't still been stuck in his pocket. A moment later, though, the offending appendage was removed and Oujiro was pulling out his own wallet to the tune of Misaki's weak protests.

Kotaro did not sleep easily that night, to put it mildly.

* * *

**AN:** So I'm thinking that this story will be five chapters total. That's the plan at the moment, anyway. Not too long, but at least it's not a one-shot for once. Other than that... (cackles) Ain't they cute? Aren't you glad that someone is actually contributing some yaoi to the Angelic Layer fandom? Don't you just wanna give me a nice, long, enthusiastic review?


	2. The King of the Layer

**Disclaimer: **(pulls on a black ski mask) It's not mine... yet!

**AN:** And this time, it's Gundam Wing's fault. 'Omae o korosu' equals 'I will kill you'. Nervous grin. Heero is so cute, ne? Incidentally, I think Kotaru-kun is loosing it... _Also, _it has come to my attention that I am very much under the influence of SandraE's writings at the moment. If you happen to like Inu-yasha, then by all means go read her stories, and bug her to update :) But read this first, wink.

* * *

**Chapter Two: The King of the Layer**

* * *

One week later...

_Oujiro. Oujiro. Mihara Oujiro. Oji-sama no Layer. Omae o korosu, pretty-boy Mihara! Heh. Ha ha._

Perhaps his somewhat maniacal mental laughter was enough to stir him out of his trance, but for one reason or another, Kotaro abruptly realized just what he was doing, and paled.

This writing... This was _supposed_ to be his math notes. Unfortunately, what it really was, was Oujiro, Oujiro, Mihara Oujiro (and so on), taking up nearly the whole notebook page. He briefly considered suicide.

It didn't help when he looked up and saw that, two rows of desks ahead of him, Misaki was writing pretty much the same thing, except with less killing and more hearts...

_Snap. _Kotaro decided to start using pens.

* * *

"O-O-Oujiro...kun?" Misaki stammered, automatically blushing. Kotaro did a fair amount of sputtering too, unnoticed.

The 'Young Nobleman' flashed his copyright debonair smile. "Konnichiwa-minna. Misakichi, I was wondering..." And Kotaro realized that, suddenly, he was not smiling at the whole group, but just at her... _Burn, pillage, kill... _"...Would you like to come practice with me this afternoon? If you don't have other plans, that is. There _is _a tournament coming up next month..."

She nodded enthusiastically. "H-Hai!"

He nodded his gratitude and then, before Kotaro realized what was happening, Oujiro grabbed the other boy's arm and dragged him off to the side, holding up an apologetic index finger behind him in a gesture to the girls to wait a moment. "Also," he said in a conspiratorial whisper, then hesitated, and Kotaro realized to his _shock _that the great Prince himself looked... awkward?

After a moment, though, he cleared his throat, and seemed to be better. "Ah, that is... Tomorrow afternoon, would you mind going White Day shopping with me?"

Kotaro choked violently.

Oujiro, for his part, grinned ruefully and patted the younger boy's back in an absent-minded kind of way. "It's got to be something special, after all. I've never really thought too hard about what to get for a girl," he said, and had the decency to look embarrassed when he added, "...usually it works the other way around..."

Embarrassed or not, Kotaro still wanted to kill him.

"...so I thought it might help if we went together," Oujiro finished, and gave another blinding smile.

"I-I," he stammered, but didn't get any further than that before being caught in a relatively loose strangle-hold.

"Hey, stop being so secretive!" Tamayo insisted, then grinned slyly and glanced in Misaki's direction. "Anyway, it's not nice to keep a lady waiting..."

While Misaki was busy blushing once again, Oujiro nodded. "Of course not; gomen... So I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, Kotaro-san? Good."

As the other couple walked away, Kotaro tried to swear, but couldn't get enough oxygen.

* * *

_Right, left, right, turn around, dip, left, turn around..._

From across the small practice layer, Oujiro smiled. "Very good! This is a hard song to keep up with."

Misaki smiled back. "A-Arigato!"

The song ended, and both Angels gave a last, perfectly-executed flourish. Oujiro removed his head-piece with a small toss of his hair, and even that was enough to draw some color into Misaki's cheeks.

_He's... got really pretty hair..._

"It's getting late..." Seemingly oblivious to her discomfort, Oujiro reached into the layer and took Wizard out. "I'll walk you home."

"Um... okay!"

As they walked silently through the streets next to each other, Misaki couldn't help but wonder... why sunsets were red, why he named his Angel Wizard, why butterflies were...

_Ug! Why is this so _awkward

"Oujiro-kun?" she said, at the same time Oujiro said, "Misaki-chan." They hesitated, and then Oujiro gave an uneasy laugh.

"You first."

Misaki shook her head at a dizzying speed. "No, no - you first."

He flinched, hesitated, hesitated a little more, and said in a rush: "Misaki, are you uncomfortable around me?"

A millisecond of startled hesitation, and then... "Of course not!" she lied with a sweet smile.

"Oh." _Just 'oh'? _For a moment she thought she'd heard something out of place in his tone. Like... regret? But then he smiled too. "I'm glad." He gestured at the house next to them, which Misaki recognized with some surprise as her own. "What did you want to say?"

She shook her head again. "Nothing... um... forgot!" She laughed, rubbing the back of her neck.

_Oujiro, are you... uncomfortable around me?_

He smiled again. "Oh. Sorry. Well... I guess I'll see you later, then."

She nodded at the pavement. "Yes." And then out of the corner of her down-turned eyes, she saw his face, quite close all of a sudden, and-

He kissed her on the cheek.

_And I _lied _to him!_

Misaki looked up hastily, seeking eye contact, but he was staring at a place a few inches above her head. "...Goodnight," he said, sounding deceptively composed, and walked away.

* * *

One week and one day later...

Kotaro sulked on the edge of the throng of students, far away from Misaki and Tamayo, eyes searching for the one boy who was taller than the others...

Eventually he found him, side-stepping between junior-high-goers with such grace that he might've been dancing, and ignoring the occasional gawker with practiced ease. When they made eye contact, Oujiro smiled, and Kotaro found himself wishing that the guy wouldn't smile so much, because maybe then he would be able to tell what he was _really_ thinking.

"Kotaro-san!" he said once he made it over, sounding pleased. "I'm surprised you waited." And before Kotaro had time to really wonder about that, he added, "May I call you Kotaro-kun?"

Kotaro scowled. "I am older than you, after all," Oujiro added, his smile looking especially innocent. That was the worst kind, Kotaro was just willing to _bet_.

"_Fine_," he found himself grounding out. "Let's just go already." Oujiro positively beamed.

And so they made their way to the shopping district, occasionally fleeing Oujiro fangirls as they went. "Piffle Princess?" Oujiro suggested. "They carry dresses and things as well, so you shouldn't have a problem finding something for Tamayo there."

Kotaro muttered something like 'go figure', so they went in.

As they walked down the aisles of Angelic Layer merchandise, Kotaro felt a peculiarly strong sense of... being out of place. There was something showing through the faces of the other shoppers - in Oujiro's face, even - that he couldn't quite fathom. It was a look he's seen many times before on Hatoko's face, and on Misaki's face too. He reached out to touch an Angel Egg, somewhat transfixed.

"I..."

Oujiro glanced curiously at him.

_Let's go for a walk... _More importantly, _Misakichi, I was wondering... would you like to come practice with me this afternoon? _These people... shared something...

"I want to make an Angel."

Oujiro's face split into another damn grin, but there was something curiously genuine about this one. "What, really? What brought this on, hmm?"

He looked down. "I don't know," he said casually, but he was thinking, _Maybe then, Misaki would want to practice with _me...

Oujiro shrugged. "Well, that's good, in any case. Would you like to help you find the things you'll need?"

Kotaro wrinkled his nose. _No! Get away from me, you! _"Don't I just need one of these?" he asked out loud, taking an Egg off the shelf.

Oujiro shook his head, suddenly enthusiastic. "Oh, no! You'll need one of these - and this - and this'd help - and - Hey, if you have the time to get it put together this week, would you like to come practice with me Saturday afternoon? You don't have any extra classes then, right? It'll take you a while to get a card of your own, so I can get you in on mine for now."

Kotaro nearly gagged. "You - N-" But he paused for a moment. At first he'd been thinking that he'd like to practice with Misaki, but... Well, though he hated to even think it, what if he couldn't make the Angel move? Though his brain told him that he'd be more comfortable humiliating himself in front of someone that he liked than someone he... well, _burn, pillage... _Though his brain told him this, testosterone said that he shouldn't even consider doing something even potentially mildly embarrassing in front of _her_. He gritted his teeth. "...Fine." _Just for tomorrow, though!_

"Great! Now, you'll also need one of these - and a couple of these couldn't hurt-"

It occurred to Kotaro that Oujiro was always, well, a lot _quieter _around Misaki. In fact, he was pretty much always a lot quieter than this. He had no idea what to make of it.

Additionally, it was hours later when he realized that they'd never bought a single White Day gift.

* * *

Kotaro had decided that perversion must run in the Mihara family. Why else would someone design a toy that had to be opened in a _bath_?

Nevertheless, after some deliberation he finally went into the bathroom with it. He set the thing on the counter, turned on the water, and stared at it as he started to undress. Hmm... _Kinda... creepy-lookin'..._

Creepy-looking or not, though, he pulled the Egg after him into the warm water, opening it and following the instructions to clean the Angel inside. Then he held the doll at arm's length and looked it over for a long moment.

_I think... that I'm doing this for the wrong reasons, aren't I...?_

Out loud, though, he said: "I guess I should come up with a name, huh?" As was typical for most people in these circumstances, his mind automatically went blank; he made a face. "Geez... well..." _It ought to be something with meaning I guess. The reason I'm doing this... _Abruptly, he grinned. "_Kokuo_."

_King. The King of the Layer. Heh. Ha ha._

* * *

A week and a half later...

For some reason, Kotaro felt compelled to arrive early. Somehow the idea of showing up second was unappealing. So he was even more frustrated to find Oujiro already leaning casually against a wall near the entrance of the training room. He smiled when he saw the younger boy, and Kotaro wondered if he would be able to _not_ punch him if he did that one more time.

"Konnichiwa!" he said pleasantly, while Kotaro tried to ignore that fact that his fist _itched_. "May I take a look at your Angel?"

Kotaro handed the doll over wordlessly, and Oujiro held it up to eye level with the expression of a connoisseur. The Angel had chin-length silver hair, and it wore a gold circlet on its head and an outfit that was a sort of futuristic take on the Medieval European style. "So... it definitely focuses on power..." He looked up to meet Kotaro's eyes, and though he was already grinning knowingly, he just had to ask: "What's his name?"

"Kokuo." Oujiro chuckled, and his eyes were so unusually sharp that Kotaro found himself looking down. He looked up again with a start, though, when Oujiro grabbed his hand.

"Well, there's a Layer open over there, so let's go..."

_Eh! _Touching. Too much _touching_. What was his _problem_? Argh...

Eventually, after Oujiro - radiating helpfulness - showed him where to plug the head-piece in, he took one deep breath in an attempt to get rid of the Revenge of the Funny Feeling in His Stomach, and tossed his Angel into the Layer. It faltered, wobbled a bit, fell on its face... and then, shakily and with agonizing sluggishness, picked itself back up again. Oujiro smiled, and Kotaro's fist clenched, even though he was secretly pleased as well.

After giving him a few minutes to get used to walking naturally and making other basic movements, Oujiro flicked on the radio on the table next to the layer. "Do you think you're ready to give dancing a try?"

..._You would have to phrase it that way. _Kotaro clenched his teeth and tried his darnedest, really he did, but it didn't quite work. He couldn't quite seem to keep up, even though it was an easy song.

Oujiro watched the angel fumble awkwardly for a moment or two, cast an intelligent eye over to Kotaro, and clicked his tongue in a gentle reprimand. "Concentrate," he said placidly, laying his hands on Kotaro's shoulders and leaning down to speak next to his ear. "It's a beginner's mistake - don't move your own body. Relax, and just concentrate on your angel."

Kotaro twitched. Total. Invasion. Of. Personal. Space. Must. Remain. Calm... What did he think he was doing, _touching _him all the time? His hands were heavy and - and warm. He was suddenly struck with surprising clarity by the fact that he could feel the warmth of Oujiro's delicate, long-fingered hands through his jacket. And this close, he could smell him too. He smelled clean and sharp - almost tangy - and strangely pleasant, and -

Kokuo crumpled into a little heap. Oujiro arched an eyebrow.

"Is something wrong? The strain-"

Kotaro shrugged his shoulders roughly, and the cursed hands were instantly removed. Lack of warmth. Bleh. "You were distracting me," he grumbled, possibly more irritable because it was _true_, except not the way it should have been.

Strain - that was it. He was under a lot of emotion stress right now, and it was making him hallucinate, or... or... Wait, was there a word like hallucinate, except for smells? _Argh!_

His first instinct was to flee, but then he noticed that Oujiro was saying something. "...this, really?"

Something about the Prince's tone concerned him, so he said, "Huh?"

Oujiro leaned back against the table with the radio, and sighed. "Why are you doing this?" he asked patiently. "I was really happy that you were interested in Angelic Layer, but I don't think your interest is just for the sake of the game, is it?"

Kotaro grimaced, feeling suddenly and inexplicably panicked, and Kokuo missed a beat. "You know, yeah, I noticed that. Why were you so excited that I wanted to play, anyway?"

"I asked first," Oujiro replied, in a cool way that made Kotaro want to punch him more than ever.

Kotaro dealt with the situation the best way he could think of, by not saying anything, and after a while Oujiro sighed again. "You like Misaki, right?"

This time, Kokuo fell backward. "Eh - B-"

Oujiro nodded. "And you're doing this to get her attention. Well, I guess love isn't such a bad reason to play." Kotaro gaped like a fish, and Oujiro scoffed with unusual severity. "What? You didn't think it was obvious? Well, if it's any consolation, I don't think Misaki and I are... quite right together..."

Oujiro flashed one last self-confident smile, which seemed rather out of place just now. Kotaro couldn't seem to get Kokuo to get back up. In fact, it took a while to even get him to move at all, even after Oujiro had walked away.

* * *

**AN: **Bleh. Awkward/angsty chapter. This was supposed to be 100 percent humor, gosh darn it! It didn't have enough of Tamayo hurting Kotaro, I guess. Well, at least it's longer than the first one. Give me your tired, your poor - or maybe just some reviews!


	3. Do You Like?

**Disclaimer: **Well, I'm pretty sure CLAMP is anything _but _broke, so...

**AN: **(glomps JessicaKittyDemon) Are you the only one who cares? Have a plushie. (sniffle) I want revieeeeeeews...! But in any case, this, which I think is the best chapter so far, is dedicated to JessicaKittyDemon, 'cause she's actually reading my story for once ;) And because she seems to be the only person reading this... (sniffle)...

* * *

**Chapter Three: Do You Like...?**

* * *

Two weeks post Valentine's Day...

_Misaki stared at him for the span of several breaths - each one of which, incidentally, felt like an eternity - and then smiled shakily._

"_I see," she said. "I... think I understand. I..." One tear crept down her face, unnoticed until it reached her lips and caused her to falter._

"_Misaki-"_

"_No." She scrubbed her face, and grinned. "I'm just surprised, really. I like you a lot, but for a while now I haven't been... comfortable."_

_Oujiro grinned, too, and ruffled her hair, making her giggle. And then they went to an ice-cream parlor - Oujiro's treat - and talked about boys._

* * *

"Oh my GAWD!" Tamayo shrieked.

"Tamayo," Misaki whimpered pitifully, as the entire classroom stared at them (and, after a few moments, a few curious students from the hall, too). Tamayo grinned apologetically, and Kotaro twitched.

"_What? _He broke up with you, and... what?" Darn it, he _hated_ it when girls whispered...

Tamayo looked at him thoughtfully. Misaki whispered something else to her, and she nodded. "I'm gonna need to talk to you, Kotaro," she said with authority.

"What? What did I do? _What_?" The girls merely exchanged deeply knowing and totally untranslatable looks, and Kotaro bent his pen.

* * *

As soon as their first break period rolled around, Tamayo seemed to materialize at Kotaro's side, grabbed his ear (because she was like that), and dragged him into an empty classroom.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow - _you_!" Kotaro seethed, rubbing his poor painful ear, but was just a little too scared to retaliate.

It took him a moment or two to notice how quiet Tamayo was.

He was just about to speak, intent on breaking this the most uncomfortable silence in history, when Tamayo finally looked up and beat him to it. "Kotaro... Do... Do you like..."

_Misaki._

_NO. That - that - if Oujiro told Misaki that he liked her, so help him -_

"-boys?"

B-B-B...

_Waitaminute. Do I _WHAT?

Kotaro sputtered and choked, but Tamayo merely shot him a withering look and kicked him in the shin. "Oh, suck it up. Specifically, do you like Oujiro?"

Kotaro stumbled backwards at the sheer evil force of the accusation. Why, it was - it was _blasphemy_! "Are you trying to kill me?-!" he managed to gag.

She shrugged. "Not really. Just trying to get some answers," she said dryly. Something about the forlorn little pout that she was trying to hide made Kotaro take her suggestion, and force himself to try to think rationally.

"What the _heck _gave you that idea?" he asked shakily.

"I _knew_ it!" she screeched, poking his chest. "You're not denying it!" Poke, poke!

"Please, Tamayo," he begged. "I hate that guy! I can't stand him, honest!"

She stared at him, then grudgingly withdrew her finger back into her own personal space and crossed her arms with a small 'hmph'. "Well, if you say so. You're always going on about him..."

"Because I hate him!" he insisted.

She pinned him with a scathing glare. "You don't like him, but you like talking about him?" she said, and waved her hand dismissively. "The point is..." She looked at him thoughtfully, and then said, "Well... maybe you better hear it from him. You probably ought to talk to him sometime soon."

Kotaro imploded.

"You - you - _YOU!_" he screamed eloquently, but Tamayo had already left the room.

* * *

And _that _was why, just a few minutes after the Junior High let out, Kotaro was standing (barely) outside Oujiro's High School.

Pant, wheeze. Bleh.

Oujiro was used to people coming up to him at seemingly unlikely moments and screaming his name in his ear. Usually, though, these people were of the female gender. And usually these people did not then grab his shoulder with a surprisingly _strong _grip, whirl him around, and glare daggers at him.

"I need to talk to you," Kotaro said dangerously.

Oujiro held up his hands in surrender. "What did I - erk."

About a minute later, Kotaro finally released his hold on Oujiro's collar, after dragging him behind some conveniently placed shrubbery. "You," he hissed angrily, poking his chest, "broke up with Misaki."

Oujiro blinked. "...Yes?"

He flushed, fuming. "She loved you!"

"No she didn't," the taller boy said calmly. "She told me so herself. You could say we broke up with each other, almost. But more importantly, _you_ love _her_. Why aren't you with her?"

Kotaro took his turn at blinking. "Wha...?"

Oujiro leaned against the school wall, and for once he allowed himself to give something that almost looked like a _smirk_. Kotaro found it disturbing on many levels, and was _almost_ certain that he wished he wouldn't. "Well, if you really loved her, the first thing on your mind ought to be finding out whether she's hurting."

Kotaro scowled, and wished Oujiro wasn't so damn tall. "That's not-"

"The _first _thing, Kobayashi," he emphasized, and Kotaro was so busy wondering dazedly when 'may-I-call-you-Kotaro-kun' became 'Kobayashi' that he actually shut up. Oujiro, looking satisfied, continued. "Not to mention the fact that as she might be feeling emotionally unstable right now, this might be the very best time to, ah, get a foot in the door."

Kotaro gawked. Finally he sputtered: "B-B-But... I though you liked _me_!"

Oujiro started. Then he totally disarmed Kotaro, by laughing. "And where did you get _that _idea?"

"Tamayo told me," he said, confidence fleeing rapidly for higher ground. _Well, at least she... sort of implied it... maybe...?_

Oujiro stared at him for a few more moments, and then sighed, and turned his gaze to the sections the tree branches and their tiny baby leaves carved out of the sky, smiling chimerically. "Well... so what if I did, though? Because you love Misaki." His eyes alone betrayed the question in the last sentence.

_Oh._

_Oh..._

_Could this be?_

_A confes-_

Kotaro ran for the hills. It only occurred to him much, much later to wonder why he'd been so _scared._

* * *

**AN: **(crazed look) Revieeeeews...


	4. White Day

**Disclaimer: **Geez, how many times do I haveta... (smirk) Oh, the heck with it. (sics own lawyer on CLAMP's lawyer)

**AN: **(sigh) Revieeeews... (glower) Even JessicaKittyDemon seems to have been scared off. You hear me, you - you _person, _you?-! (beam) But! Guineapiglover is nice, so this chapter is dedicated to her :) Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Four: White Day**

* * *

The day before White Day...

Over the next couple of weeks, Kotaro made it his number one priority to avoid Oujiro at all costs. It wasn't hard at all to avoid him in person, because he didn't come to see Misaki after school any more, but other than that...

He was in magazines. He was on TV. He was on freakin' billboards.

Another Angelic Layer commercial came on, and Kotaro cursed mildly and changed the channel before they even showed Oujiro, even though he'd liked the show. If he saw one more - one more - one more _anything to do with HIM_, he'd probably lose his appetite for dinner.

_-but there's still time!_, the new channel declared. _This White Day, shop at-_

Kotaro twitched abruptly, and snapped his chopsticks.

* * *

_Dresses! Jewelry! Candy! Anything pretty, please!_

Kotaro was at Piffle Princess - because his capacity for original thought was greatly lessened at the moment - scanning the shelves with a desperate sort of dread gnawing at his stomach. He had to find something, and fast, or...

_Tamayo's Secret Double Kick Attack!_

_Tamayo's Special Head Lock!_

Also, it had to look a lot less cheap than it actually was, because he didn't have much money at the moment, having spent it all several weeks ago on a certain toy he hadn't played with since...

His eyes picked out a pretty necklace - the last one in stock - and he pounced on it. Not fast enough, however; his greedy fingers wrapped not around a delicate, bauble-hung chain, but around a delicate, nearly effeminate, _warm _hand.

Kotaro and Oujiro stared deeply into each other's eyes for a moment. Kotaro then jumped back as if he'd been electrocuted.

And Oujiro smiled at him as if nothing was wrong. "Kotaro-san! Oh... Oh, my. Don't tell me... that you haven't finished your White Day shopping, either?"

Kotaro choked mildly, but then he looked at the floor and said, "Yeah. Um... So-" He reached out and hurriedly snatched the necklace off the shelf. "Since you're not going out with Mi..."

_Big ouch! _Kotaro cringed at his sheer _stupidness, _and then he looked up at Oujiro and felt _really _bad. The older boy's face looked like it was made of plastic, or just possibly, glass.

"Oh, yes, I see what you mean," he said, his smile growing instantly crystalline - easily shattered and utterly see-through. Kotaro found that, at that moment, he did not feel at all, even in the slightest, compelled to punch him. "Since your return gift is for a girlfriend, whereas mine is merely for a close friend, you should definitely buy it. Actually, this would probably be more appropriate anyway-" He grabbed a rather ugly bracelet at random, and turned away.

Kotaro grabbed his shoulder. He forced him to turn around, opened his mouth, shut it again, and tried again. "I..." _I am so, so sorry. _"I, I'm..." He was mortified to find that he was starting to blush, and he hurriedly removed his hand from Oujiro's shoulder. Finally he gave up, thrust the necklace into the other boy's hands, and fled.

* * *

The day of White Day...

Oujiro was truly cruel, Kotaro reflected. He deceived them all with that innocent face, but really he was _horrible_.

Kotaro was not a morning person by nature. Plus, he'd stayed out well past his bed-time trying to find White Day gifts, having a panic attack when he realized that he had to _wrap_ them, too, and then wrapping them. And he wasn't expecting this. This was an ambush, it _was_.

Because, instead of waiting until after school like a nice, _predictable _person, Oujiro had apparently skipped school today, and was waiting outside the Junior High.

"W-" was all Kotaro was allowed to say, before Oujiro caught hold of his elbow and pulled him, at a run, to a secluded area at the back of the building. Though he was panting a bit, Oujiro pushed Kotaro against the wall, and braced himself against it with his hands of either side of the younger boy's head, effectively trapping him in a most cliché fashion. Kotaro blanched.

"You know what I realized?" the Prince of the Layer said quietly, voice slightly husky due, _surely_, to him being out of breath. Kotaro believed that he paled further. "You... owe me a White Day present."

_WHAT?_

Oujiro nodded calmly. "Because I bought you ice-cream," he elaborated, and it clicked.

"Hey!" Kotaro protested. "I was going to pay for that-"

He shrugged. "Doesn't matter." That really was a smirk; he was positive this time. "So... what are you going to give me?"

He smelled _really _clean, Kotaro thought, because his mind was currently collapsing and it was the most intelligent observation he was capable of making. And a little like... chocolate? _NO. _And yet he couldn't help but wonder self-consciously if the fact that Oujiro smelled well-bathed to him meant that _he _smelled gross to Oujiro... Then again, judging from the expression on his face, he thought not. Kotaro gulped, and felt far too warm.

A normal person would've punched him. But normal implied _sane, _which Kotaro was convinced that he currently was not. Couldn't be. This wasn't happening, after all, not really. Oujiro's eyes were _not_ dark with, well, something that started with 'l', in any case. Quite probably several things that started with 'l', all at once. Also, Oujiro was _not _leaning towards him, closer and closer until his god-damn pretty hair was brushing Kotaro's forehead and -

Chocolate _ice-cream. _And warm and wet and soft, and a hand on his waist -

"Oh my GAWD!" Outside, it _echoed._

Oujiro jumped, causing his hand to graze over Kotaro's ribs, sending an intense little shiver up and down his spine, and turned to face her.

"T-Tamayo!" Kotaro yelped, guilt coloring his cheeks impressively. "This isn't - I didn't-"

Something flickered across her eyes almost too quick to see, and then she grinned. "That is so _cute_!" she declared, rushing forward to pat Oujiro's back hard enough to make him gasp. Then she turned to Kotaro. "And in return for you _cheating_ on me, I'm gonna tell _everyone_!"

"Wait - _no_ -!" He reached out a hand to catch her, but she was already gone, so after a moment he slumped against the wall instead in wretched defeat.

"So... Does that mean she's _okay_ with it?" Oujiro said softly, incredulously.

Kotaro shook his head. "No," he grumbled. "That's the way she is. Though that does mean... that she _will _be okay with it..." Then he hesitated, and twitched. "WHAT am I SAYING?!" he shrieked, making Oujiro grimace and hold his hands over his ears. "There is no 'it'! There is no 'will'!" he rambled. "You - you horrible, _gross-_"

But then Oujiro kissed him again, and he was quiet - well, mostly - for a very long time.

* * *

**AN:** (cackles) Oh, you _wish_. I'm not _that _nice. I'm a busy girl! I have other fics, you know! Well, okay, so I have grown rather attached to this couple, but... No! You can't make me! Nooooooo...! _Well_... If you ask real nice... and if I happen to be bored... (stares at the pictures in her head) Snicker. Pretty.


End file.
